The Return of an Ancient Evil
by Theoneknownasme
Summary: My first fanfic... Short chapters, but easy to update... please R
1. Prologue: the demon returns

First things first: I do not own Final Fantasy or any of its characters. I own a copy of the game, but that is it.  
  
Okay, I know that this chapter is short. If people seem to like it, I'll write some longer chapters, but if people hate it, then I'm not going to do anything more with it.  
  
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A foul wind blew across the fields. A strange, nearly infinite power emanated from the place where it all began. The Temple of Fiends. The stronghold of evil, where the Demon Lord, Chaos unleashed his power upon the world. The place where Chaos was defeated by a group of four warriors.   
  
Everyone had believed that Chaos had been obliterated. The humans, elves, and dwarves of this world would soon realize that such a powerful force could not be so easily overcome. The demon smiled, thinking of what his power would do to this world, remembering what it had done so many times in the past.  
  
He lengthened his reach, encompassing all of the area around The Temple of Fiends. Every plant withered at his touch, every animal fell under his control. He needed to use the animals of this mortal world, since he had not yet recovered enough to leave the temple himself.  
  
He slowly took control of the imps in the forest around Coneria, in order to search the town. He knew where the warriors had made their home. He soon found that his search was not in vain. There... the four warriors that were the cause of his downfall were less than ten miles out of his reach. It did not matter to him, though. He was patient. Soon, his power would be great enough to reach even the Mirage Tower, tens of thousands of miles away. Then he would be able to eliminate those warriors that were such a threat to his existence.  
  
He laughed, an unearthly sound that struck an unknown terror into the hearts of all people. Soon, the people of this mortal plane would know his power again.  
  
Chaos had returned with a vengeance.  
  
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That's all for this chapter. Please R&R. if I get enough people saying that they like it, I'll continue. 


	2. Enter the Light Warriors

Disclaimer- I do not own Final Fantasy or any of it's characters, or anything else that may or may not appear in this fic.  
  
Note: ~ denotes a thought.  
  
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No one quite knew why they stayed away from the man in the corner. They all knew that he was a stranger in town, yet no one ever approached him. All that they could do was sit and stare.  
  
He could feel their stares. He was used to being stared at, but that did not keep it from bothering him. ~Well~, he thought, ~it's better than some of the alternatives~. He frowned, remembering villages that were not so friendly to strangers. ~All that they have to see is the blue robe, and they start thinking that I'm here to burn down their town. They start thinking the only way to get rid of me is to run me out with pitchforks. Black magic can have its flaws.~  
  
He looked around, trying to find the person that he had been waiting for. He had searched the world, trying to find his three former companions, but this one somehow eluded him. The others had been found easily, but trying to find a ninja in a big city was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.  
  
He looked around for his other two companions. After a while, he found them in the middle of the room, gambling. Just as soon as he found them, he felt the hairs raise on the back of his neck, While an ominous figure appeared in the doorway to the inn. ~Dark take it! Why does the vampire show himself now?!? And the room has to be full of people.~  
  
He steeled his will, started gathering the strength that he would need to fend off this dark creature. The others noticed the vampire, too, and he could sense them preparing for the inevitable battle.   
  
The vampire struck first, but the wizard nimbly dodged his attack, and cast a low-strength fire spell. Any higher would have cooked everyone else in the room. He saw the knight strike at the vampire with his legendary sword, Excalibur, and he noticed the red wizard loosening the equally legendary sword, the Masmune, in its scabbard. He cast another fire spell, wishing that the people would just get out of the way. The red wizard struck with the Masmune, and the battle was quickly over.  
  
Both of the swordsmen cleaned their swords and sheathed them, then walked toward the black wizard, smiling for some reason. He released his will, and gave them a grim look. The smiles faded from the faces of the other two, though they still seemed unnaturally energetic.  
  
"What's wrong with you, Jake?" the knight asked as he reached the black wizard. "That was the first battle we've had in a long time, and it was an easy one, at that."  
  
"You know damn well what is wrong, Steven. This," he gestured at the remains of the vampire, "shouldn't be here. It means that something has forced the old monsters to come out of hiding and there are only a few entities that have that kind of power. Have either of you found our ninja friend yet?"  
  
"Not hide nor hair of him," replied the remaining wizard, named Robert. "Not that that means much. It's going to be nearly impossible to find him in such a big city."  
  
"I saw him before we came here," Steven supplied. "He was doing his best not to be seen, but we can always recognize a fellow Light Warrior."  
  
"Well then, let's go find him. I have a feeling that we're going to need his help before the end of this."  
  
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The three warriors ended up in the darker side of town.  
  
"What the hell is he doing over here?" Jake wondered aloud. "it's not like the people over here have much to steal, and there's no one important to assassinate, so why would he be in a slum like this?"  
  
Steven answered his question with an honest answer. "I truthfully don't know. All I remember is seeing him when I came down here last week."  
  
Robert eyed him knowingly. "And just what were you doing over in this part of town?"  
  
"Uh... well... you see... it had been a while since our last fight and... uh... a knight has to constantly practice and..."  
  
Jake gave an exasperated sigh and voiced his opinion. "It doesn't matter what the hell YOU were doing here. All that matters is that you saw our own personal Shinobi."  
  
They all felt the warning prickle on the back of their necks. The feeling that someone was watching. They split apart, pulling out various weaponry, facing in different directions to combat whatever was about to attack them. ~Oh God, why has this happened twice in the same day?~ Jake wondered. Then they heard the laugh from right above them.  
  
"Put your weapons down. If I had really wanted to kill you, you would all be in need of a clinic right now." The speaker dropped down from his precarious perch, and looked at them all. "I see that the old 'Light Warrior' group is back together again. I assume that is the reason you came looking for me."  
  
"Well, yeah, but how did you know we were looking for you, Kyle?" Jake asked.  
  
"Please, don't ever ask such a stupid question again. I'm a ninja. I was stalking you from the moment you left that inn, and none of you were any the wiser."  
  
"One question, if you don't mind," Robert said.  
  
"Okay, shoot."  
  
"What are you doing here in this part of town?" Rob asked.  
  
"You should all know that by now. We're all being hunted, and I had to find a place to hide for a while. Problem is, they always seem to know where I am." Kyle shook his head. "I don't understand it. They could never find me back when we had the four orbs."  
  
"Yeah, that's kind of why we came to find you. I have a theory, but neither of these two assholes believe that I might be right for once," Jake told him.  
  
Steven scoffed. "Here it comes..."  
  
Jake gave him the death-look that only a black wizard can manage. He turned back to Kyle, and began to speak. "I believe that the Dark Lord Chaos has returned."  
  
"No kidding? Well, I guess that means that I'm in, whether I want to be or not. You can't very easily find another Warrior of Light, and we're the ones that killed Chaos the first time. It can't be much harder this time, can it?" Kyle asked.  
  
"I am afraid to say it, but I believe that you are wrong. It is going to be much harder this time around..."  
  
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Well, tell me what you think. And if you are going to be evil, at least make it worth my time to read. 


	3. In over our heads

Disclaimer- this one is good for the whole story, cause I'm getting sick of writing them. I do not own Final Fantasy or any of the characters. 'Nuff said.  
  
I am writing this chapter at 12:30 in the morning and I am on a Pepsi high, so if this chapter sucks, GET OVER IT. Actually, tell me so's I can fix it.  
  
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A wolf's howl was heard from off in the distance. Kyle felt all of his muscles tense up at the sound. ~God, why are the frickin' werewolves out now?!? It's far too early... unless... no, must undo the "unless". This is a universe sans unless. But just to be safe...~  
  
"Guys, we really have to get out of here now. The werewolves are hunting, and there's a safe place not too far from here."  
  
"Aww, why are you worried about the werewolves? They haven't attacked anyone since we took Chaos down." Rob just couldn't resist voicing his opinion.  
  
"Did you bring any silver weapons along with you? That's a pack of at least twenty wolves out there, stalking us, and I cannot kill them all by myself." The wolves howled again, closer this time. "We have to go. Now!" He stalked off into the shadows.  
  
"Well, let's go then. I don't know 'bout you guys, but I don't want to spend the rest of my life as a half man wolf type thing. You DID know that that's what happens to you when you get bit by a werewolf, didn't you?" And with that note, Jake walked after Kyle.  
  
Robert and Steve shared a slightly nervous glance, then reluctantly followed the other two, still convinced that it was a pack of regular wolves, and nothing more.  
  
After traversing a few nervous streets, they stopped. "We're here," Kyle announced.  
  
"So are they!" replied Jake.  
  
The werewolves were indeed coming down the opposite side of the road. "Guys, get inside now! I can hold them off!" Kyle threw himself at the pack of mutated wolves, drawing his twin silver swords and letting forth a war cry.  
  
"Dammit, that's torn the whole thing," Steve muttered, drawing the Excalibur. He then plunged into the fray.  
  
"Well, if they're gonna be idiots and try to throw their lives away, then I better make sure they don't succeed," Rob said to Jake, drawing the sword that was thought to be a legend for over two millennia. The Masmune. All who beheld it could feel its power, which was why all were able to wield it with such power and skill.  
  
"Ah, shit!" Jake cursed as all three of the other Light warriors jumped into battle with the werewolves. With all of them fighting, he couldn't use his magic without the risk of hurting his teammates. He cursed again, then stood back as he realized that his magic was not needed anyway.  
  
A short while (and many bloody corpses) later, the three swordsmen stood back to survey their handiwork.  
  
"Well, it was a bit messier than my normal kills, but it got the job done," Kyle said as he looked at the twelve wolves he had taken down alone. He then turned to the others to ask the question that had been burning in his mind. "How the hell did you hurt those werewolves? I could've sworn that they were only hurt my silver or magical weapons."  
  
"What do you think these are?" Rob asked, gesturing to the two swords lying on the ground, dropped from battle weary hands.  
  
Kyle stared at them, uncomprehending for a minute, then suddenly flashed a grin. "Why you miserable little bastards. I thought some government would have come along and asked you to hand them over."  
  
"Well, in truth, they did. They just figured they'd stop after we killed half of their assassin population and a few government officials." Steve looked like he was having a good time, looking back on days long past.  
  
Kyle grinned too, then put on a sober expression as a wolf howled in the distance. "We still shouldn't be out on the streets. There's more than one pack out hunting tonight."  
  
He walked inside the building in front of them, followed by his three friends.  
  
At the room at the top of the stairs, they stopped. "What makes you so sure that this place is safe?" Rob asked as he eyed the rickety wooden door, just barely hanging on to its hinges. "No offense, but that door looks like a stiff breeze would blow it over."  
  
Kyle nodded. "I know. That's why I 'hired' a mage to put a warding spell on that door. Hired... more like knocked him out in a blind alley then forced him to cast the spell. Anyway, no one can come in unless I invite them."  
  
"Why 'hire' a mage? Why didn't you cast the spell yourself?" Jake wondered.  
  
"Because I can't cast magic... you already know that."  
  
"Don't give me that. I'm a full-fledged black wizard. I know potential when I see it, and you most definitely have that potential."  
  
"This is all very interesting, but why don't we get down to the matter at hand, here?" Rob asked. "If Kyle has potential, that's all well and good, but if we don't try to figure out this mystery, we could end up deep fried as the end of some bad dude's world conquest."  
  
"Well, there are only two logical explanations, and I don't like either of them." Kyle thought out loud.  
  
"Please elaborate," Jake said as patiently as he could.  
  
"Well, the way I see it, there are two things that could cause this. One of them is the return of Chaos. The other is the possibility of something stronger than Chaos coming to this world. Either way, it amounts to pretty much the same thing."  
  
"And what might the conclusion be?"  
  
"We are utterly and irretrievably screwed."  
  
"Why do you say that?" Steve asked.  
  
"Jeez, just think about it for a minute! We had to leave the elemental orbs two thousand years in the past to supposedly ensure that Chaos would not come back. We barely stood a chance against him WITH the orbs of light, so how are we going to face him now? And if it's someone stronger, we were screwed from the moment this whole debacle started!"  
  
Suddenly the door crashed open with nothing to have made it move. Nearly as suddenly, Kyle noticed a shadowy figure behind his knight friend.  
  
"Steven! Look out!" Too late. The assassin had already done his work, and was now making a beeline for the window. He made it about halfway before a throwing knife embedded itself in his back.  
  
"That was for how much those damned Phoenix Downs cost." Kyle said grimly. He then turned to administer the Life-giving drug to his currently deceased friend, and found out that someone had beat him to the punch.  
  
"Damn. NEVER get your throat slit by an assassin. It's humiliating in addition to it hurting like hell until you die." Kyle smiled. His friend was back from the dead and no worse for the wear.  
  
Jake grinned too. Then his expression quickly turned to a grimace. "I thought you said that door was warded." He said to Kyle.  
  
"It was. I don't know how something took it down," Kyle said, trying to think.  
  
Suddenly an ominous voice, something that sounded eerily like nails on a chalkboard whispered something to each of them.  
  
"No warding is strong enough to keep me out... you shall all be dead within a fortnight." With that happy thought, the voice disappeared.  
  
"Please. Tell me that isn't who I thought it was," Steven moaned.  
  
"It was the General of the Undead. Lich." Jake said shakily.  
  
"But we killed him! I remember him crumbling into dust! We all saw it!" Kyle exclaimed, desperate for something, anything to hold on to.  
  
"No spirit is so far gone that it cannot be retrieved. And the undead are easier to revive than most others are. We have to leave as soon as possible. I fear it is no longer safe here. We should get some sleep tonight. We stand a better chance against anything that can be thrown at us if we can actually see it. " And with that note, they all turned in for the night, looking for answers in their dreams.  
  
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So, review and tell me what you thought. I need some input. Two reviews aren't enough to go on.  
  
Till next time! Sayonara! 


	4. A note to my readers

A note here...  
  
Sorry for not updating lately. Been fighting writer's block, a rebellious computer, and a lousy school schedule. Well, I got over the writer's block and updated the computer, but I might not be able to write any more for a while. If I do still get to write, I'll have that third chapter up soon. Check my profile for more, cause I don't want to take up any more space here.  
  
Till next time, Theoneknownasme 


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